


The Firefighter and the EMT

by sgteam14283



Category: Chicago Fire, Marvel Cinematic Universe
Genre: Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - Different First Meeting, Community: be_compromised, F/M, Friendship, Gen, NaNoWriMo
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-03-07
Updated: 2016-03-07
Packaged: 2018-05-25 05:08:14
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,806
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6181474
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/sgteam14283/pseuds/sgteam14283
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Firefighter Clint Barton was a sucker for redheads and motorbikes. EMT Natasha had both. Then the betting pool in Firehouse Five went into overtime.</p>
            </blockquote>





	The Firefighter and the EMT

**Author's Note:**

> Written for Be_Compromised's 2015 Secret Santa exchange and one of the ideas was 'firefighter au' and I absolutely love Chicago Fire so I figured why not combine the two? (also written as apart of NaNoWriMo 2015) Don't own anything you recognize and enjoy!

Being in a fire station in Chicago was never dull, but that’s what Clint Barton liked about it. There was always something happening, either a car crash, some random accident, or homeowners trying to prove that they really were handy when in reality they should just call a professional. 

Plus being on Rescue Squad meant he and the other guys got their own table in the garage and didn’t have to listen to Herrmann’s pitch at another ‘investment opportunity’ that would just end up with them losing whatever they spent. 

Clint was sitting in his normal chair that faced the bay doors just as shift was starting when he heard the sound of heels making their way up the drive. That in itself was noteworthy because no one at the house wore heels (well Pepper did but only because as the Chief’s secretary she didn’t leave the station while working) and Clint looked up to see a redhead in a CFD shirt and jeans while wearing what looked like Louis Vuitton heels and carrying an overnight duffle. 

Standing he went to meet the redhead at the door, “Can I help you?”

“I’m looking for Chief Boden.” She pulled off her sunglasses while speaking and Clint was struck by her blue eyes and slightly Boston accented voice.

“I’ll take him to you. I’m Clint Barton by the way.” Clint smiled at her as he led her towards the inner firehouse door. 

“Natasha Romanov.” Natasha said as she stepped inside, taking a look around at her new assignment and noting that while it could use a fresh paint job and a good scrubbing, for a Chicago firehouse it was actually not that bad. She had needed to get out of the suburbs, after Bucky had gotten hurt she realized that she needed to get out of there before something else happened.

“Barton, I see you’ve already met our new EMT.” Boden said as he walked into the garage and smiled. “Welcome to firehouse five Miss Romanov. You meet your partner yet?”

“Thanks.” Natasha smiled, shaking the extended hand. “And not yet, I just got here and Clint was the only one in the garage.”  
“Brett should be here, let me find her. Barton why don’t you introduce her to the rest of the guys?”

“Will do Chief.” Clint said with a nod as Boden walked towards the locker room to see if Sylvie Brett was there.

“They’re a great bunch of guys, if a little odd.” Clint apologized in advance as they walked towards the common room. “And if Herrmann wants to talk to you about an investment opportunity, say you don’t have the funds because he’ll try and pitch some half-baked scheme that will only end up with your garage full of supposed ‘energy drinks’ and your wife will use that in the divorce.” 

“Personal experience?” Natasha asked, raising an eyebrow and cracking a slight smile at the statement.

“Something like that.” Clint said as he opened the door and let her walk through first. “Hey, this our new EMT, Natasha. Natasha that’s truck; Casey, Thor, Otis, and Gabby Dawson. And this is some of squad; Severide, Carol, and Steve.”

Everyone waved as Clint introduced them and just then Brett walked in so Clint left the pair to get acquainted and wondered back out to the garage, his thoughts on Natasha.  
\--  
The truck rolled to a stop and Clint jumped out with the rest of squad, looking at the burning building just as the window blew out and everyone instinctively ducked while covering their heads to shield themselves from the flying glass. Once the danger had passed Severide yelled, “Barton, Danvers get in there and see if there’s anyone inside!” 

Clint and Carol nodded at the orders and after masking up, ran into the burning building. The smoke was thick but these were the moments Clint lived for, why he joined the fire department in the first place. “Fire department, call out!” he shouted while pausing, his mask muffling his voice but knew that if there was anyone there they’d still be able to hear him. Listening for a response over the sound of wood crackling, Clint didn’t hear any cries for help and began to move forwards when suddenly there was a loud snap and he felt the floor give way. “Carol!”

“Clint!” Carol shouted as she saw her partner fall through the floor. She leapt to grab him and managed to catch his hand just before he fell out of reach. “Hold on!” 

Clint felt his helmet and mask fall off as he jerked to a sudden stop but was grateful for the save. “I’ll do my best.” He said, coughing as smoke filled his lungs. 

“Kelly, I can’t hold him for long!” Carol yelled in to her radio, already feeling Clint’s hand starting to slip. 

“ _Hang on, we’re coming!_ ” 

Clint coughed more as he continued to breathe in the smoke and winced as ash and burning embers fell onto his face. “Danvers, pull me up-we don’t have time to wait.”

“Okay.” Carol steadied herself before using all her strength to pull Clint up. “You gotta stop eating all those donuts Barton, it’s making you fat.” 

“Only once Lucky stops eating all the pizza.” Clint laughed at the attempt to distract him and wasn’t surprised when Carol managed to slowly bring him back up-the woman was on squad for a reason. Just as his head reached floor level Steve and Dawson showed up, helping Carol pull Clint the rest of the way up. 

“Danvers take Clint back out, we’ll finish up here.” Steve ordered as Carol slung Clint’s arm around her shoulder.

Carol nodded and quickly got Clint out, helping him to the curb where he gratefully sat down-coughing as he inhaled the fresh air and glad to be alive after that close call.

“You okay?” Natasha asked as she ran up to Clint, worry etched on her face as she unslung the stethoscope and pushed his fire jacket aside in order to hear his heartbeat.

“I’m fine.” Clint replied in-between bouts of coughing that made him seem like he’d spent his entire life smoking.

“Bullshit. C’mon you know the drill, we’re taking you to the hospital.” Natasha signaled for Brett to bring over the gurney and activated her radio to let Chicago Med know they were coming in.

They kept him overnight for observation and he received a clean bill of health so Clint was glad to be back to work when next shift rolled around. Sitting down at the squad table, he noticed Natasha and Brett taking inventory of the ambulance and smiled at Natasha when she glanced up at him. There was something about the redhead that he found interesting but he couldn’t figure out what it was.

“What can you tell me about Clint?” Natasha asked in a low voice as she rechecked the supplies while Brett wrote the numbers down. 

“Like what? He’s divorced, lives with a dog who for some reason loves pizza, and can be a pain in the ass sometimes.” Brett commented, wondering where the inquiry was coming from. Natasha had been with the firehouse for almost a month now and no one knew much about her, other than she drove a motorbike and had come from the suburbs after her ex-boyfriend got into some kind of accident.

“How did someone like him get on squad?”

“His ex-wife pushed for it, Bobbi said that if she was going to be married to a fireman it was going to be someone who was on squad. He made it in record time though, even if his marriage fell apart six months after he joined. Herrmann said that was an interesting year, Clint almost quit and moved to California just so he could get away from her.”

“She was that bad?”

“Nah, he just didn’t couldn’t handle the hoops she was making him jump through. But when he ran into Kate Bishop he decided to stay.” Brett replied casually as they finished checking the ambulance and she climbed out. “Hey Clint, you on for drinks at Molly’s tonight?” 

“Only if you’re buying.” Clint called out from his spot at the table. “You coming Nat?”

Natasha closed the doors to the ambulance and shrugged, “I guess. What’s Molly’s?” 

“A bar a few miles from here that we like to crash every once in a while.” Brett said winking at Clint, knowing what the man was up to and willing to go along with it. “It’s a pretty nice place with decent drinks.”

“You up for it?” Clint asked, putting on his best smile.

“What time?” Natasha pulled out her phone to set a reminder so she didn’t forget.

“Right after we get off shift.” 

“Alright, I’ll see you there.”

\--  
Molly’s didn’t look like much on the outside, but once you walked in you were greeted with the feel of a neighborhood bar that had stood the test of time. While it sported the requisite TVs with whatever game was playing at the moment, it had plenty of tables that encouraged people to sit down and spend a few hours unwinding from the long day they’d just had. 

When Natasha stepped through the doors she was spotted Clint sitting at the bar, next to a young girl with dark hair, and wondered if that was Kate. Walking towards them she edged past Casey and Dawson, “Hey there.”

“Hey Nat. This is Kate, I’m sure Brett’s told you about her.” Clint said with a nod towards Bishop who smiled at Natasha.  
“Nice to meet you, and I’m sorry but I need to get back to the hospital before they miss me.” Kate said standing and making her way towards the door. 

“She’s your girlfriend?” Natasha asked over the din of people ordering drinks and talking about their day.

“Girlfriend? Nah, I met her at the hospital when I was getting divorced from Bobbi. Had to go in for a routine check-up and she was my nurse. We got to talking and learned we have a lot in common. We hung out a few times and she kicked my ass back into shape during the divorce.” Clint explained while finishing his drink. If he hadn’t met Kate when he did, Clint knew he would’ve quit and moved out of the state-letting Bobbi have her way.

“She takes care of Lucky when I’m on shift.” 

“She must really like you.” Natasha said as her drink was set down in front of her.

“Somethin’ like that.” Clint stated as he finished his drink and was about to signal for another as his cell phone buzzed on the bar. 

Natasha saw _Barney_ on the caller ID, looking up in time to see his face darken and quickly silence his phone. “Who’s Barney?”

“My brother.” Clint replied and pulled out money to pay his tab. “I’ll see you next shift.”

But when next shift rolled around he wasn’t there, and when Natasha asked Steve all he said was that it was a personal matter and Clint had just needed some time to deal with things. Finding herself curious, Natasha wandered over to where Carol Danvers was sitting and sat down in the open chair. “You’re Barton’s partner, why is Barney such a taboo topic with him?”

Carol looked up from the newspaper she was reading with a raised eyebrow and shook her head, “Not my place to say. And trust me when I say that when it comes to Barney you’re better being in the dark.” 

Natasha idly tapped her fingernails against the table as Carol got up and walked away, there was something about Clint that struck her; maybe it was the fact that they were both private people or that there was an air of cockiness (or recklessness) when he smiled or walked in as shift was starting.

\--  
Walking towards her bike, Natasha was glad that the shift had gone by without any major calls; sure they had gotten a few but it was minor stuff, nothing too exciting. She’d just put on her helmet when her phone rang and pulled it out just before it kicked to voicemail. “Hello?” she asked, not recognizing the number.

“ _Nat? It’s Clint._ ”

“Clint? Are you okay?” 

“ _Yeah. Listen…can you pick me up at the Watertower? I’ll buy you breakfast._ ”

Natasha was confused but figured that he’d at least give her some explanation over breakfast. “Sure, I’ll be there in half-an-hour.”

“ _Thanks._ ”

It was still early enough that morning traffic wasn’t a problem and pulling up to the curb she looked for the familiar face and finally spotted him next to the landmark.

“Hey, thanks for picking me up.” Clint said when he was near and took the extra helmet she offered, slipping it on as he climbed onto the back of her bike. “I know a nice diner a couple of miles from here, you up for some eggs and homefries?”

“If you’re buying I’ll take a stack of pancakes.” Natasha shouted as she merged into traffic. The diner was everything Clint said it would be, cozy but welcoming at the same time, and after they placed their orders Natasha looked at Clint who was sporting a bruise on his forehead and a cut on his cheek. But instead of asking the obvious question she went in another direction, “Why call me? I’m sure that the other guys at the station would’ve picked you up in a nicer ride.”

“Yeah…not so much. Don’t get me wrong, they’re great it’s just…Steve and Herrmann would’ve lectured me about getting sucked back in with my brother and Carol wouldn’t have said anything, just given me that judging look that she has, and Kate was completely out of the question-not after last time.” Clint said as he methodically stirred sugar into his coffee. He was still kicking himself for almost letting Barney ruin his life again, not when he finally felt like he had some semblance of control over it, and was just glad that he’d gotten out before it blew up in his face like it always did.

“Dare I ask about last time?” Natasha asked, wondering how much trouble Barney was if the others would lecture Clint.

“Let’s just say that instead of Watertower Place I ended up in Madison with an APB on my car.” 

Natasha waited until the waitress set down their food before asking, “If Barney’s so much trouble then why deal with him?”  
“Because no matter how much of a headache he is, Barney’s my brother and it’s just us. We bounced from place to place until we aged out of the system, fortunately I managed to get into the Army so at least I could stay out of the trouble that seem to follow us but Barney wasn’t so lucky. He gets in trouble and I try to bail him out.” Clint wasn’t sure why he was spilling his life story to Natasha, but something told him that she’d understand or at the very least not judge him too much.

Natasha was silent as Clint talked, at least partly understanding where he was coming from, it hadn’t been easy growing up with a Russian last name in an Irish neighborhood. And if it hadn’t been for Bucky (and to some extent Steve) then she probably wouldn’t of moved to Chicago and become an EMT. “Well it seems to me that you’re doing what you think is right and if the others can’t understand it then that’s their problem. Now for the important question-Sox or Cubs?”

“Cubs of course.” Clint replied, noticing the shift in topic and silently glad. Natasha wrinkled her face in disgust and Clint felt like he’d just failed some kind of test, “Don’t tell me you’re a Sox fan.”

“They _have_ won a Championship this decade, unlike the Cubs who last won when the Ottoman Empire still existed.” 

“Hey they could’ve won it this year if the Royals hadn’t decided to actually start playing baseball during the Divisional.” 

“Wow that sounds like every Cub’s fan ever. It’s always going to be ‘the year’ and it never is.” Natasha teased before taking a sip of her coffee. They spent the rest of breakfast bickering over sports and if Cutler would get benched during the season again, until they walked out of the diner and Natasha asked, “You need a ride to your place?” 

“Sure. I…I had a good time.” Clint said, stuffing his hands into his jacket pockets and suddenly feeling awkward. 

Natasha smiled, “Me too.” As they sped down the busy streets, Natasha hoped that if things didn’t work out she wouldn’t have to transfer houses because she was starting to like it at the station.

\--  
“So you and Clint huh?” 

Natasha looked up from the magazine she was reading to see Brett giving her one of those looks that said she was curious but not trying to be obvious about it. “We’re just friends.” she said in a neutral tone while feeling her face heat up. After the diner they’d been low-key about the whole thing; drinks at Molly’s, breakfast after shift, or a workout at the gym. They knew how awkward workplace romances could be if they didn’t work out so they were testing the waters first, seeing how they were as friends first and then maybe progress from there.

“Sure…and Casey and Gabby aren’t dating either.” Brett said sarcastically. “At least tell me you’ve been to his place because I heard from Carol that his apartment should be declared a hazardous materials site.”

“How would Carol know how bad his place is?”

“Kate told her that Clint’s incapable of organizing things.” 

Natasha silently agreed, that did seem to fit with Clint’s personality. “If it makes you happy, I have met Lucky-and you’re right the dog is adorable. Where did Clint find him?” 

“He was hanging around the firehouse for a while and for some reason Clint was the one to take care of him. Then District got wind of what was happening and said that he needed to go so Clint did what Clint always does, he took Lucky back to his apartment and has been there ever since.”

Natasha was about to reply when the two-tone alarm sounded and everyone in the house froze. 

“ _Truck Fifty-One, Squad Three, Ambulance Thirty. Warehouse fire, 1732 West Warren Boulevard._ ”

Everyone dropped what they were doing and ran towards the trucks, pulling on their gear and hopping on as the massive doors rolled open. Natasha and Brett hopped into the ambulance and Natasha flipped on the sirens as they headed towards the fire. Once they arrived they hung back since no one needed assistance yet but they knew that could change if there was anyone inside the structure.

As she watched Casey and Kelly shout orders to truck and squad so they could contain the fire, Natasha hoped that no one was stuck inside of the building. Clint headed up the ladder to start venting the roof with Carol, Otis, and Joe Cruz and threw her a quick wink before disappearing. “ _A fire is no place for flirting Barton._ ” Natasha thought while rolling her eyes but let a small smile creep onto her face. 

They’d only been on the roof for a few minutes when their radio’s crackle to life and Clint’s voice come over it, “ _Chief we’ve got black smoke here._ ”

“Barton, Danvers, Otis get off the roof now!”

“Shit.” Natasha heard Steve curse as he stood by Boden.

“You’re telling me.” Natasha muttered as she climbed into the back of the ambulance and grabbed their kits. Tossing one to Maria she hopped out of the vehicle in time to see everyone but Clint climb down the ladder. Worried, Natasha knew she couldn’t do anything but wait and hope that he made it before the building blew up. After what seemed like forever, they saw a rope drop from the roof and a muffled, “Look out below!”

A second later Clint came running towards the edge, grabbing the line as he launched himself off and slammed into the wall of the building. As Clint swung away from the building he used the momentum to his advantage, twisting so his feet hit the brick and pushing himself off as he rappelled to the ground. Letting go of the rope he dropped the last few feet and paused long enough to look up before sprinting away from the building.

Clint felt his helmet fall off but kept running, knowing there was only so much time until the building went up. His feet had just hit the curb when the warehouse exploded, sending glass everywhere and Clint felt the shockwave toss him like he was a ragdoll. Hitting the concrete Clint tumbled forwards, letting out a grunt as his oxygen tank slammed into his back and his head hit the concrete. Rolling to a stop it took a few seconds for Clint’s brain to catch up to what had just happened and he dimly hoped that Boden wasn’t going to yell at him too much for that stunt.

“Barton!” Kelly yelled as he looked up to see the younger man lying in a heap on the ground and heard Natasha yelling as her and Brett rushed forwards to tend to the injured man.

“We got him!” Brett shouted to Kelly as they neared Clint. She saw the leader of squad nod and then turn to the rest of his team, starting them on containment duty while Casey ordered his men to start putting out the fire.

“Clint?” Natasha asked she and Brett knelt on either side of him, unhooking his oxygen tank but not moving him any further in case he had a spinal injury. “You with us?”

“I think so.” Clint mumbled, feeling a little fuzzy around the edges and didn’t know if it was because of him slamming into the exterior of the building or slamming into the concrete.

“You remember what happened?” Brett asked as she slipped the C-collar around Clint’s neck and pulled out her pen light to check his pupil response.

“I pulled one hell of a move to get off the roof. Was it awesome?”

Despite the seriousness of the moment, Natasha couldn’t help but smile a little. “Hey Clint, we’re gonna get you onto the gurney and take you to Chicago Med, get you checked out.” She said as Brett seemed satisfied with Clint’s response and went to get the gurney from the ambulance.

“Another overnight observation, great.” Clint deadpanned as Brett reappeared and they gently transferred him onto the body board. 

“Hey you don’t know that, I’m sure you’ll be out in time to watch the Blackhawks game at Molly’s.” Natasha said as they wheeled him towards the ambulance and got him into the back, Brett heading towards the front while Natasha stayed in the back with Clint to monitor him. Once they were speeding towards the hospital she looked at Clint and smiled, “Don’t tell anyone but that jump was pretty amazing, where’d you learn it?”

“Would you believe me if I said I grew up in a traveling circus and the acrobats showed me a thing or two?” Clint smiled despite the sharp pain in his back when Natasha chuckled a little.

“Fine don’t tell me. But I do have to say that we’re not your personal nurses, gotta save our services for others you know.”  
Natasha teased, hiding the fact that for the split-second between Clint leaping off the roof and when he grabbed the rope her heart had stopped; hoping that he didn’t miss it and end up splattered on the concrete below.

“Yeah I know-I’m just lucky like that.” Clint winced as another spasm of pain ripped through his back and he really hoped that he hadn’t pulled anything. “ _But if getting hurt means I get a pretty red-head to look after me then I should do it more often._ ” He thought as they pulled into the entrance of Chicago Med and was wheeled into the emergency department.  
\--  
Clint grabbed his bag and got out of his car, stretching his back before locking it (not that anyone would steal his beater that masqueraded as a functioning car) and heading up the firehouse drive. It had been three weeks since he’d taken the dive off of the warehouse roof and he’d finally been cleared for active duty; in his mind it had been a week too long but Clint only put up a cursory amount of protest since being off gave him plenty of time to think about Natasha and where he’d like to end up with her. 

“Hey! How’s your back?” Natasha asked as she spotted Clint walking into the firehouse. The firehouse had been quiet without him around and when she’d realized that, Natasha knew she was done for. At first she’d wanted to deny her feelings for Clint, she’d done the firehouse relationship with Bucky and it had only ended in heartbreak and her transferring to the city to get away from it. But then she realized that they had slipped into an easy friendship and while she had no desire to change that at the same time she knew that eventually she might want more. And she wasn’t sure how Clint would handle it, even though it was almost two years since his divorce Natasha was pretty sure she would be his first serious relationship. “ _And if he doesn’t want that…then I hear Wisconsin is a pretty nice place._ ” She’d thought to herself while getting ready in the locker room.

“Better. I’m ready to jump back into it.” Clint grinned at the lame joke as Natasha rolled her eyes. “Hey…you got a second?”

“Something on your mind?” Natasha asked as she leaned her back against the ambulance, trying to play it casual while her stomach was tying itself into knots.

“Had a lot of time to think while I was on leave, about us and…” Clint trailed off while scratching the back of his head. He’d never been the most articulate, one of his many faults according to Bobbi, but he needed to just power through it if he wanted to make any kind of progress. “Well I’ve always enjoyed the time we spend together and I feel like we kinda understand each other; we haven’t had it easy but we’ve never let that stop us right?” 

“You could say that.”

“And you laugh at my dumb jokes.”

“Only because they’re terrible.”

Clint let out a nervous chuckle, “But you still laugh. Anyways, I wondering if you’d like to go to the annual benefit together. You’d have to wear a dress and I’d have to suck it up in a suit and the food will be blah at best, but there’ll be drinks and cheesy piano music.”

Natasha raised an eyebrow at the roundabout way of being asked out on a date but thought it was just like Clint to ask like that. “I think…that’d be nice.” She said slowly, pushing off of the ambulance and moving towards Clint. “And we could go to somewhere else after if you’d like.” 

Clint couldn’t believe that Natasha had agreed to go out with him on an actual date and so when she suggested they go somewhere else after the benefit he just nodded, if she’d asked for the moon just then he would’ve tried to give it to her. “Completely agree.”

“Damn it, couldn’t you guys have waited one more week before agreeing to go on a date!?” Brett exclaimed in an exasperated tone as she appeared from the back of the ambulance. “I was _this_ close to winning the three hundred dollar pool but you had to go and let Carol win.”

Clint and Natasha looked at Brett in surprise, they had thought that they were the only ones in the garage. “There was a pool on whether or not we would go out with each other?” Clint asked while raising an eyebrow. He shouldn’t have been surprised, they had a pool for pretty much everything; hell they even had one on when Casey and Dawson would break-up again. “How about this, you keep your mouth shut about this, we’ll make plans in front of everyone in a week so you win the pool, _and_ you give us half the winnings.” 

“Make it eighty dollars and you’ve got a deal.” 

“Half and I’ll get Otis to put in forty more.”

“You know what? I don’t even know why I’m out here.” Brett said with a smile and disappeared the way she’d come.

Natasha watched Brett leave and smiled at Clint, feeling for the first time since transferring that she’d made the right choice and that Firehouse Five finally felt like a home.


End file.
